Great speech, an inspiration. I feel you are right about freedom of choice. People are often judged by their material wealth, even if it is a house of cards. What was once healthy and good; ‘the american dream’ has morphed, I think, into something unhealthy and perhaps destructive. Most people carry way too much debt and have no idea how their lives are becoming more and more restricted.
I learned my lesson when I was a young man. I had $1000 in credit card debt and decided to pay it all instead of monthly payments. Sent a check and thought that’s that. Nope. Still twenty odd dollars in interest owed. Called the credit card company they told me exactly how much I owed them and I sent another check of that amount. Done. Nope, not done. Got a bill for a dollar or so because of interest accrued during the week it had taken my check to arrive… Fine, here’s your dollar. Nope, same thing now I owed them, believe it or not, $0.11. I felt like I was walking waist deep in molasses. So I sent them five dollars and keep the change.
Never again did I go into debt. Life can be kept very simple if people simply save for what they need. If you can’t afford it, don’t buy it.
We simplified our lives. Bought a small house raised chickens and had a nice vegetable garden, and did not try to keep up with the rest. We did buy a sailboat years ago, but don’t live on it. However when I sail, live is simple. I tack, reef, listen and feel while at one with myself and nature.
We dream about moving onto a sailboat and exploring the world, and I felt your comment how you chose to make the decision and then figure it all out was well put. We are not ready yet but when the time comes we will cast off and explore and experience the wonders that are out there.

Sincerely, Henk.

PS, Regarding the waterspout. I never felt so alive when I was chased by a black bear defending her cubs, all my senses so alert, so in-tune with my surroundings. Just the wit of my brain, strength of my body and courage in my heart.

Fair winds,

Glyn UK

I am way-the-hell the other side of the “Don’t Trust” Zone they told me about in the Sixties. I’ve got a modest boat myself, a Bristol 29.9, which I am going to use as a “test bed” to see if I have what it takes to live on a boat as “my only home.”

Spotted your story in the February 2012 Cruising World … and I wish I’d read it before I published “Solo Sailing – And I Mean Sailing” on my own blog. I was so utterly “taken” by your story of your “convoy sail-about” with Ben! Pardon me for gushing …

“Beyond The Sunset,” my blog, is currently more about men’s rights than about sailing. I’m using single-handed sailing as a metaphor for “Men Going Their Own Way,” or MGTOW – something similar to the “Herbivore” movement that’s getting so much attention in Japan. Your site is the first SAILING blog I’ve added to my Blogroll.

Thanks for sharing your story! I admire you, you and Ben are now among my Heroes!

If you intend to live aboard a boat and travel long distances, I recommend you first sail as much as possible aboard a variety of boats before deciding which one to buy and who to trust aboard with you. Walk down to your local marina, cruise the docks, and offer a hand during regattas or if you see people going out sailing. Post a notice on the bulletin board, and ask around. There will be people who will take you sailing. Learn as much as you can from them, read books, and watch cruising videos.

If freedom is your top priority, then I’m not the best source for seeking advice on how to get that. At this point, my recommendation would be to see the world via “Couch Surfing” or “WOOFing” (World Organization of Organic Farms). Maintaing a boat will cost you twice as much as you expect, but maintaining a backpack with clothing and a sleeping bag is much, much, less.

I don’t find living on a boat freeing. In fact, sometimes I wish I lived in an apartment so I could experience more of that freedom that you expressed. However, it will also depend on your financial situation and how you will meet your basic needs. Some cruisers have a lot more freedom than I do, but they either have been lucky in money, or were able to save more money than I was, or are retired. In fact, most cruisers are of retirement age, and I believe that is the reason why. Other cruisers go for only a season up to a few years, and make a sabbatical out of it, rather than a lifestyle. At the present time, I am not cruising. I am living aboard and saving money for my next venture which I hope will happen in the spring of 2013.

In 2009 I met a young couple who had purchased a cheap boat on eBay. They had never been sailing before, didn’t know what condition the boat was in, and probably didn’t even know what to look for in a boat. They traveled down the east coast without charts or lights, were warned as being a danger by a cruise liner, drug anchor multiple times, set their boat on fire at least once, and eventually their boat sank while they were aboard. They never had more than $20 in their pocket, and lived strictly off the generosity of strangers. The entire time they said they were living true to their dreams and “finding themselves.” But in the meantime, they were putting themselves and others in danger. The romantic dream of sailing about has masked the reality of work and money that it takes.

The most important questions you need to be focusing on, during these two years you plan to use as preparation, are: 1) How much will this cost me? 2) How will I pay for this? 3) What experience do I need in order to keep myself, my friends, and other boats sailing near me safe during my travels?

As you start to work out those details, you’re plan will become more clear. Your finances and skills will determine where you travel, what type of boat you’ll get, and if you should be alone or with someone else. Two years is plenty of time to prepare. Stay focused and you’ll be sailing soon.

Sincerely,
Teresa

Fair weather!
– Adam

I have no experience. I grew up and currently live in Wisconsin. I have never been on a boat. This may sounds strange, considering the choices I intend to make, but I possess an unusual personality type that I truly believe would work very well within this lifestyle. I have spent 3 years thus far reading various cruising and liveaboard blogs and stories, watching videos, etc. I realize that reading and watching are much different than actually being out there on a boat, however, and that is why I will be spending two years on my boat at a local marina in Milwaukee while I finish my college degree, before casting off and enmeshing myself into the lifestyle completely. This way I have an out and two years to decide whether or not to use it. But currently, no experience.

If I choose to travel with others, it would be my two best friends, Jeff and Becky. The three of us are currently roommates in a small two bedroom apartment, living modestly while attending the University of Wisconsin. I truly believe we would get on well together on a boat, and they are as excited as I to try it out. I suspect, however, that at least one of them may change their mind during the two year stay at the local marina.

I do however prefer to be alone sometimes. I do well on my own, and often wish for solitude above and beyond what I can get here at the apartment. And this is where my question comes into play. I honestly cannot decide whether or not I’d prefer to go at this alone or living with others. Thus, these comments seeking advice and/or information. I wont be making any solid decisions until we’ve lived at the marina awhile, but even at that point, while I’d certainly have a better idea what it’s like to live on a boat, I’d still have no knowledge of the workload, hardships, or general workability of going at this alone. Also, size of boat. I’d be buying a boat before knowing whether or not I’ll be doing this alone, so I find myself at a loss as to what kind of size or configuration to look for.

I don’t have the opportunity to obtain a loan to buy a boat with, but I do have decent employment that I can maintain even whilst living aboard a boat, as long as I have internet access. I can buy a 3G modem and subscription for internet purposes, so I figure income is handled. I plan to have around $15-20k (USD) saved up for boat buying purposes, by the time I actually begin shopping for one, and my income would be about $500-$3000 per month, depending on how much I wish to work.

As for your “most importantly” point, well, I’m not exactly sure. One thing I wish above all else is freedom. Not the “make fun of politicians” kind of freedom, but, rather, the “ok lets go see what New Zealand is like” kind. I have been living in poor areas of Wisconsin my entire life, and there’s a world out there full of beauty that I haven’t seen even the smallest part of. There are other motivations for me as well, but while I give them just as much weight, they are much more difficult to put into words. In a way, though I’ve lived a stationary life, I feel like I have the heart of a nomad. My feet have wanderlust. I need to go places.

One last thing I wish to ask, if you’ve gotten this far, is how you compromise with your partner? What if he wishes to travel to, random example, Hawaii, and you want to see Australia? How do you decide priorities? What happens if the two of you were to separate? Who gets the boat? I don’t mean to imply that this is likely to happen or anything, just curious. I could easily imagine similar scenarios that might cause friction between my friends and I.

Well, that’s about all I can think of as to the requested information. Or perhaps you weren’t requesting that information as much as simply suggesting I keep it in mind? If that was the case, my apologies for this long comment.

Off to read your article in Cruising World. Thanks again!
– Adam